


Your Haven

by AmTheDreamer



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Daddy!Charming, mama!snow, mentions of Captain Swan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-15
Updated: 2014-12-15
Packaged: 2018-03-01 15:52:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2778917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmTheDreamer/pseuds/AmTheDreamer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The day after Emma and Hook go out on a date, David starts acting weird. Worried about her father, Emma confronts him. They end up having a heart to heart that opens old wounds and helps them realize a few things about each other in a way only a father and a daughter can. Now with a mama!Snow chapter as well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Daddy Charming

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I watched Sunday's episode again and again and just felt like something was missing. So here is a little Daddy!Charming missing scene. Takes place a day after Emma's and Hook's date. Check out my other Daddy!Charming one shots and my Charming family one-shot collection for more.

David was acting weird ever since that morning, when they drove together to the station. She noticed how uncharacteristically quiet he was, how he tensed whenever she got even the tiniest bit closer to him, how he held his breath way too many times the past few hours.

She was sitting in her chair, working on some paperwork, while David was sitting in his own chair. There was nothing unusual about it, they did it every day. Except he was staring, instead of working. And he had been staring for the past fifteen minutes.

"Is everything okay?" she asked from her seat, looking for his eyes. But he kept staring at her, not even making a move to answer her question. She breathed out a sigh, already worried about the man in front of her. "Dad?"

The word was like magic. His eyes snapped up, finding her own, and he gave her a smile. A smile that almost showed nothing was wrong. Only it never reached his eyes.

"What did you say honey?" he asked in his usual soft, fatherly voice. The same one that demanded she talked to him at the ice cream shop, the same one that praised her in the forest, after she lost trace of the snow queen, yet stopped her for the day.

"I asked if everything is okay," she replied, her voice high with what she tried to pass as confidence. "You're acting odd today".

"I'm perfectly well princess," he said, his smile growing. But she wasn't convinced. Not at all.

"Something is bothering you," she pushed. "You know you can tell me right?"

He waved his hand at her. "I'm okay Emma, promise. Just tired – your brother kept us up all night".

She sighed again. He was as stubborn as she was, she knew that already. She decided to let it slide for the time being and turned back to her paperwork. Sooner or later she would find out what bothered him, and she would fix it, just like he fixed everything when she was the one hurting.

They worked in complete silence for the rest of the day. She caught him staring a few more times, but ignored it every time, offering him a small smile instead. Sometimes she would get a smile from him as well. Sometimes he was staring so hard, lost in thought, that even her smile would go unnoticed.

The drive home was quiet as well. He let her drive after she insisted for a while, and she could feel his eyes on her the whole way. He was so occupied with her that he did not notice when she pulled in the middle of the forest. He blinked, startled by the sudden stop, and turned back to her.

"What are we doing here?" he asked quietly, his eyes unfocused.

"I'm worried about you," she confided. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes when he attempted a smile and insisted again that he was, in fact, perfectly fine.

"I know you better than you think Dad," she answered, opening the door and stepping outside. Seconds later he stepped outside as well. As much as he was unfocused, he would never let her run around the forest alone. Not with the snow queen out to get her.

She folded her arms across her chest and gave him her best serious glare; one that she knew mirrored her mother's. "We're not leaving until you tell me what's bothering you".

He opened his mouth to tell her he was fine again, she was sure. So instead of letting him speak, she cut in. "Please Dad," she begged, a tiny voice inside her pointing that she sounded just like a teenager pleading for permission to do something dangerous. "Please, just tell me what's wrong".

He sighed, and she was sure it was a good sign. He was finally going to tell her what was bothering him. And after she knew what was wrong she could fix it and have her brave, funny, talkative, protective Dad back.

"You're not supposed to worry about me, _I'm_ the parent".

"What does it have to do with anything?" she bit, "if my Dad is hurting, I want to fix it".

"But that's not how it works," he insisted. "I fix things when you're broken. You're not supposed to see _me_ broken. I'm supposed to be your haven".

"Dad, you need to tell me what's wrong".

David took in a deep breath, and opened his mouth to speak. "I just got you back. You're all grown up but you're also my baby girl, my princess, my tiny warrior. And even though you're an adult, I'm not ready to see you go. And yesterday with… yesterday with Hook was just a little hard on me. Because when I looked at you with this dress, and you looked so beautiful, I wanted to hold you in my arms and never let you go".

He had tears in his eyes, and she knew she had tears in her eyes as well. And she could not help the blush that crept to her cheeks. Oh, how her heart ached for him. She stayed quiet for a minute, making sure she had the power inside her to form the exact words she was thinking about.

"Dad, _you are_ my haven. You're always there to pick me up when I'm broken, and you always know exactly what to say or do to help. I know I'm not the little girl you lost all those years ago, but I'm still me." She got closer to him, her right hand grabbing his left one, squeezing hard.

"I don't know how it feels to have a child the same age as you, but what I do know is how it feels to know you missed all those years, with all the experiences. Yesterday was amazing for me, not only because I got to go on a date. It was amazing also because for the first time I had my parents with me before one. The proud looks you both gave me yesterday made me feel loved and wanted".

"You will always be loved and wanted," he interrupted, kissing her hand.

"I know Dad, and that's exactly my point. In a few years I might find a man or move to my own place. But it doesn't matter where I am living, Wherever Mum and you are, that is my home as well. And no matter whom I find to either spend my life with or just date for a while, the three most important men in my life will always be Henry, Neal and you."

He looked at her with such love she felt like she was breaking in the inside. With one last bit of courage she pulled him into her arms, her head resting in the crook of his neck. And after a few moments during which she clung to him like her life depended on it, she whispered final words.

"And just as much as you'll forever see me as your baby girl, I will forever see you as my father. No matter how old I am. I promise you that, Daddy".

****


	2. Mama Snow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here's the second chapter.

**_  
_ **

Walking inside the house, Emma Swan let out a heavy sigh. She took off her jacket, kicking off her boots in the middle of the house. Rubbing her eyes, she walked slowly to the mirror, intending to take out her contacts.

"Where's your father?" she heard behind her.

With a little jump she turned around. "Gee, woman, you gave me a heart attack".

Snow smirked, raising an eyebrow at Emma. Emma just gave her a small smile I return. "He's picking Henry up from Regina's".

Snow looked into Emma's eyes, making the woman slightly uncomfortable. After a few moments of holding herself, Emma couldn't handle her mother's stare any longer and turned to the mirror again, her right finger rising to her eyes.

"It's a good thing you feel more comfortable using those glasses at home. You really don't need to go around using those contacts at home," Snow said quietly, her face appearing behind Emma's in the mirror. "You're so beautiful".

"Mum," Emma grunted, grabbing for the glasses on the counter. "Stop".

"But you are Emma!" Snow's voice raised a few octaves. "You're my perfect, beautiful girl. And I can't help but notice that more when you look so at home".

"I'm home," Emma replied, turning to face her mother. She gave her a small smile. "I promise I'm not going anywhere".

Snow returned Emma's smile with a teary one of her own, wrapping her daughter in a tight hug. One that got Emma saying "okay, when I said I wasn't going anywhere, I didn't mean I wanted to stay stood here. I do want to go to the kitchen, I'm kind of starving".

Both women let out a soft laugh as they walked together to the kitchen, Snow already heating some of the lunch she made earlier that day. "Sit down, beautiful, I'll get you everything".

As much as Emma wanted to just ignore that feeling, she knew something was up and she had better address it. Thinking back to her conversation with her father not half an hour ago, she took a deep breath, preparing herself for yet another emotional conversation.

"Mum," she started quietly, adding a small thank you as Snow placed a plate in front of her and sat on a chair next to her. She looked at her mother until she received an expectant nod.

"You know that I can feel something's up".

"Your father called," Snow said in return, as if it was all the answers Emma needed.

"And told you about our conversation. Yeah, I figured he'd do that. But it's not just it, is it?"

She watched as Snow took a deep breath, looking deep into Emma's eyes. "I can't but look at you and think to myself – 'this perfect girl is mine'. And right now, it hurts".

She knew she should be more sensitive to the situation. But she couldn't help herself. Her embarrassment mixed with her sense and she just gave her mother a curious look. "Why?"

Tears started rolling down Snow's face, and Emma knew it was only a matter of time until she started crying herself. And just when she thought she could hold it, her mother went on. "Because you're finally opening up. You're finally letting us in and letting us be your parents. Every time I see you open up a little more I want to hold you closer. And seeing you with Hook—"

"You're not ready to share," Emma finished with a soft nod.

Snow nodded, wiping at her tears. She got up and grabbed for a tissue, and Emma was sure she was going to disappear into a corner to blow her nose and relax, but Snow just handed her the tissue. And that's when she noticed that she had tears in her eyes as well.

"I'm not going anywhere Mum," she said quietly.

"That's why I feel so silly," Snow agreed. "Because when I see you, and you're so at home in here, I just…"

"Look," Emma sighed, pushing the plate away and leaning closer to her mother's face. "I don't know yet what's going on with Hook and I, let alone do I know if he's the one. But there's one thing I know for sure Mum. I know for sure that this is my home. I know that right here, in this tiny apartment, is where I'm going to comfort my little brother when he's mad at his parents, where I'm going to find a shoulder to cry on, where my Mum and Dad are. And this isn't going to change. No matter what."

"Oh honey, yes. Always and forever," Snow cried, wrapping her daughter in a tight hug again.  "I'm so glad you finally feel at home".

"How can I not," Emma bit sarcastically. "My father dropped me here and went to bring _my son_ home because I happened to mention I was hungry, and my mother shoved her head in my mirror just to tell me how beautiful I look with my disgusting glasses just before she gave me a plate of homemade, amazing food. Not to mention you and Dad keep giving my childish nicknames".

"Sorry kiddo," a voice called from the main door, "you'll forever be our baby. Same age or not".

Both women turned to look at Charming and Henry now standing at the entrance, Emma's eyes widening at the huge ice cream box her son was holding.

"I'm so getting the first scoop of that ice cream after you all made me go through emotional conversations," she called out, already turning to take out some spoons and bowls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to tell me what you think!

**Author's Note:**

> Tell me what you think? I was thinking about adding a little Mama!Snow missing scene as well, so if you're interested just follow this story or tell me in a comment.


End file.
